Zhao the Conqueror
by KimDavenport
Summary: No one could find this library hidden deep in the Earth Kingdom desert, and even if they did, there was nothing there for them on the Fire Nation. And this new book under his arm would gain him favor in the Fire Nation army for sure. He would be famous. Years from now people would call him Zhao the great, Zhao the incredible, Zhao the conqueror.


The air was stiflingly hot. The heat given by the bright white sun in the sky doused the entire landscape in a dry, sepia light, and made the ground crunchy with heat.

Zhao pulled the rags he had wrapped around his head back a bit, pondering whether being free of the unbearable conditions of his headgear was worth the nasty sunburn it would surly cost him. The moment he raised the cloth even an inch, however, the bright beams caught him in the face and he could barley see. With a growl of frustration, he let the fabric fall back over his forehead and continue his trek.

 _Foul, horrid place_ , thought the firebender to himself. _Even the Fire Nation doesn't get this hot. Such an unpleasant country; they're lucky we even_ want _to take them over._

Zhao continued on, too tired to even consider taking a break. He had been at this momentous trek for three whole days, and he was too exhausted to turn back.

 _Once I find the library, it will all be worth it,_ he reminded himself.

Ah yes, the legendary library. Folks in the Misty Palm Oasis told him stories and tales about the infamous 'cave of knowledge' when he had stayed there a few nights ago on the way back from a successful earth kingdom raid. Having been intrigued by their legends, he asked for more details.

According to myth, there was a structure hidden deep in the heart of this desert that contained the mysteries of the universe. At least, as close to it as human knowledge could reach. It supposedly had writings from the greatest thinkers throughout time, on a huge variety of subjects across the world. Such a treat was too good to pass up. Zhao had informed his soldiers to continue back to the base without him, because he was going to check out this mysterious library in the desert.

The trek to the library was supposed to be very dangerous, deadly even, according to the folks at the inn. As Zhao announced his plans to head out into the desert, an old man from a corner booth had reached out and grabbed his arm.

"No, don't go!" cried the man in horror. "The dangers out there! The heat! Great winged bugs! Magnetic rocks and wolf dogs! You'll never make it!" The whites of his eyes were nearly round, contrasting greatly with his dark, sunburned skin. The man looked completely terrified.

"Get off of me, earth peasant," spat back Zhao, shaking the old man off. "I'll be fine, a desert can do nothing to best one of the Fire Nation's greatest fighters."

Now, out in the desert, Zhao could see what had frightened the old man so much. One could easily lose their way in such harsh conditions, and be killed.

But Zhao had meant what he had said. He was a fighter, one of the best from the Fire Nation. And that was no small ordeal. Fire was a fierce element, built on the thirst for power and control. None of this would be possible without endurance and a passion for progress, ideals in which both Zhao and the Fire Nation were plentiful.

Zhao kept his head bent low, out of the harsh sunlight as he walked. Periodically he raised his hand to his forehead and looked at the broad, sandy land around him to keep track of where he was going.

The day passed for many hours like this. Just as Zhao was beginning to consider finding a place to sleep, he saw something in his periphery vision that made him pause.

There, a structure stuck up from the sand; a large pole of some sort.

 _It hardly looks big enough to hold all the world's knowledge_ , thought Zhao to himself. Still, he adjusted his course accordingly and approached the structure.

The sun was edging into the golden hue of sunset when Zhao finally made his way to the pole. It was tall, at least twenty feet, and stuck directly into the sand. He made his was around it, searching all over for an entrence.

"Interesting," he said to himself. "How is one to get in?"

When he reached the front again, he stood with his hands on his hips, looking up at the top of the pole. It was then that he noticed a small window at the top.

 _Maybe I can get up there and see what's inside._

Zhao pulled out some rope and a small, carved Fire Nation knife. He secured the rope to the knife, and then began swinging it back and forth, gaining momentum. He finally released the knife and sent it flying in through the window. The words "Never Surrender" glinted on the handle of the knife for a second, and then vanished, along with the rest of the knife, into the window.

Perfect shot. _Of course it was._

Zhao made sure the knife had caught to something before pulling himself up the side of the building. He used the rope to secure himself and grabbed rocks and in between stones to climb.

The tower was tall and somewhat difficult to climb, but Zhao did not slow down for a second. He wanted to see what was inside.

Reaching the top, Zhao threw one leg over the edge and peered down. What he saw shocked him.

The interior of the pole was indeed the entrance to a library. But this library was massive, continuing far down into the ground and to shadowy depths. The walls were emerald marble, and they were covered in bookshelves of mahogany, packed with books, ledgers, and scrolls.

"The crazy town people were right," laughed Zhao to himself. "Who would have guessed?"

Zhao flipped the rope into the interior of the tower and jabbed the knife to the outside of the building. Then he propelled himself down onto the top floor of the library.

"This is incredible," he said, marveling around him at the tall bookshelves, which were much more impressive now that he was on the ground floor, and not peering down from above.

"Isn't it?" asked a deep voice behind him.

Surprised, Zhao turned suddenly. There he saw a massive creature, towering above him. It had the shape and coloring of an owl, but there was something about it (besides its massive size and the fact that it could, aparaently, talk) that gave him the feeling it wasn't an owl from any realm he had ever been in. It had an otherworldly glow about it.

"Why do you seek my library?" asked the owl.

"Your library?" responded Zhao. "What makes it yours? This is the knowledge of the humans, is it not?"

"Yes, but I was the one who built this library over hundreds of eons ago, constructed it with my own wings, then brought it here from the spirit world to share it with you humans."

Ah, the sprit world. That must explain the owl's glowly presence. And the fact it could talk.

"Well if you brought it to share, why did you hide it away in a desert? Seems like a contradiction to me." Zhao hoped that by teasing the bird, it would fly off so he could have a chance to look around unhindered. He wanted to see if anything in here might be of use to the Fire Nation. Secrets about the Earth kingdom's capital city, Ba Sing Sea, for instance.

As if the bird could read minds, he began to speak again. "Humans who came only searched for ways to harm other humans, to get the upper hand in fights. I soon tired with being the fuel to their squabbles, so I let my library slip into the backs of their memories."

Zhao quickly tried his best to put on a pleasing, innocent face.

"I come for no such purpose," he lied. "I only wish to observe your library, and the great knowledge it holds."

The owl waited him for a moment, then bent closer to study his garb.

"You are Fire Nation," stated the owl.

"So?"

"Do you think me a fool? That because I have locked humans away from my domain that I do not keep up with the goings in the human world? I know your country is trying to invade the world, raging war on everything else. How am I to know you are not here on a mission to find weaknesses in your opponents?"

This creature was very observant, for an owl.

"I could not have been sent on a mission, because up until I found it, no living humans even knew your library was real," pointed out Zhao logically. "And allow me to introduce myself. I am Zhao, just a citizen of the Fire Nation. I have no great feelings about the war; I am a simple farmer on a trip and thought I might see if the myths about your great library were real."

"I am Wan Shi Tong, he who knows ten thousand things," responded the owl.

"It's nice to meet you," said Zhao sweetly. "Now, may I be allowed to look upon the great mass of knowledge in your aweing library?"

The owl considered him another moment, then responded. "Yes, I suppose you may. These books are useless; after all, if no one will read and learn form them. But you must leave some wisdom with me to add to my collection."

"I see, quite wise, then your collection will always be growing," said Zhao. He dug in his pack for a moment, pushing aside military statistics and battle plans. He was sure those would have interested the owl, but it might blow his farmer cover if he were to suddenly pull out Fire Nation military plans. Finally, he found a small book at the bottom about Firebending basics.

"Here, the teachings of the masters of the Fire Nation islands," he said, holding the book out to the owl. Wan Shi Tong waved his wing and the book vanished from Zhao's hands.

"Enjoy the library," said the owl. And without a glance back, he took off, leaving Zhao with a blast of cool air.

Zhao made his way throughout the library, pulling out dozens of books and skimming the pages. He found a variety of interesting things, but nothing incredibly useful until he came to a book on Water Tribe traditions.

It was titled "The Sprits of the Northern Water Tribe," and showed a picture of two fish circling each other on the cover. Interested, Zhao opened the book and began to read. It told about the moon and ocean sprits, which worked together to keep harmony in the Northern Water Tribe. Apparently, these spirits were in the forms of fish, and lived in a special sanctuary in the Tribe.

 _Sounds like a bunch of myth hoo-haw,_ thought Zhao. _Still, it might prove to be useful. I should look more into this later._

Zhao replaced the book and turned the corner onto the next isle. Then, he paused, shocked at the sight before him.

He had just come from what he believed was the "Spirit" section, and now seemed to be moving more into the knowledge from the human world. Apparently, the owl had collected quite a lot about humans, and had helpfully arranged the information into shelves according to its country of subject.

Zhao looked about him in horror; everywhere he looked he saw Fire Nation books, by some of the most respected Fire Nation authors in history. Flags, banners, and Fire Nation insignias decorated the walls and hung from the ceiling.

 _This isn't good,_ thought Zhao desperately. Frantically, he began to pull books from shelves and flip through them. He caught histories of the Fire Nation, genealogies of the royal family, and studies of the government system in the Fire Nation Islands.

Maps of the Fire Nation. Blueprints of the royal city. Information on their culture, history, policies, _weaknesses_.

Zhao threw the books to the ground one by one, becoming more angered by the second. Then he saw a book titled "The Weakness of Firebending." Enraged, he ripped the book off the shelf and opened it.

" _Much like the lunar eclipse can weaken a water bender, a solar eclipse will leave a fire bender powerless for…"_

Zhao yelled, ripping the page out before he could read any more.

He looked around him at the massive shelves decked out in the dark reds and blacks of the fire nation, and at the scrolls and books bursting with information and secrets.

 _None of this in harmless; anything could be used against us by an enemy._

Zhao could feel his anger increasing. The crushed page in his hand began to smoke as his rage built. Firebending had always overcome him in times of great distress. His old teacher had claimed it be a downfall he should work on controlling, but Zhao saw no need. Firebending and destroying was what he was supposed to do to gain power, so difference did it make whether he did it while he was upset or with a calm head?

 _No one can find these secrets,_ thought Zhao. _But how can I stop them? I can't take all these book back with me to the Fire Nation._

Then it hit him. He looked down at the paper in his hand, now blackened and singed.

 _Burn it all._

Without pausing to think, he blasted the shelves across the way. The force of his bending nearly lifted him off his feet, but he managed to stay steady as he burnt the entire row. Book after book of secrets of the Fire Nation was engulfed with his flames.

He burnt it all. The scroll, the books, the flags, everything. The entire bookcases were aflame. Then he ran to the other isles, looking for anything with even a hint of red and adding it all to the heap.

He had made it halfway through the library when he heard a swooping of wings approaching him. He ran back to the Fire Nation section and threw a few more quick blasts at the end of the isle, just for good measure. The fire had reached incredible heights now, and he was confident it would engulf the entire Fire Nation section of the library, burning all the weakness of the Firebenders away in the flames.

The wings were getting closer. Zhao quickly ran back to the "Spirits" section of the library and grabbed the book on the Northern Spirits. It would probably come in handy, and he doubted he could return to read it more thoroughly if he wanted to, so he was probably best to take it.

Despite hearing the owl's approach all around him, Zhao did not catch sight of the beast all the way back to the tower he had come in through. The smoke _was_ catching up with him, however, and he shielded his eyes as he made his way to the rope.

Clutching it tightly in his hands, he scurried his way up the rope and jumped out the window, back to the blessed dessert.

He was free.

Zhao looked over the horizon, and could see the sun beginning to rise.

He had been in the library all night.

Zhao quickly stood and dusted himself off, then started in the direction of Mystic Oasis. His search for the library had paid off, giving him an edge in this war as well as eliminating the world's biggest collection of knowledge on the Fire Nation.

Now, he felt, the Fire Nation's secrets were truly safe. No one could find this library hidden deep in the Earth Kingdom desert, and even if they did, there was nothing there for them on the Fire Nation. And this new book under his arm would gain him favor in the Fire Nation army for sure. He would be famous. Years from now people would call him Zhao the great, Zhao the incredible, Zhao the _conqueror_.

 **Team: Fire Nation**

 **Round: 6 (Ambition)**

 **Category: Themed**

 **Prompt: 4. (Setting) A library**

 **Word count: 2,659**


End file.
